Fluid purifying apparatus



March 23-, 1965 w. B. CLAYTON FLUID PURIFYING APPARATUS Original FiledAug. 17, 1959 FIGI FIG3

FIGZ

INVENTOR WILLIAM B. CLAYTON- ATTORNEYS United States Patent "ice3,174,819 FLUID PURIFYING APPARATUS William B. Clayton, Waco, Tex.,assignor to Merrick edicine Company, Waco, Tex., a corporation of exasOriginal application Aug. 17, 1959, Ser. No. 834,109, now Patent No.3,060,943, dated Oct. 30, 1962. Divided and this application June 28,1962, Ser. No. 206,014 2 Claims. (Cl. 21-78) This application is adivision of the copending applica tion of William B. Clayton, Serial No.834,109, filed August 17, 1959, for Container Cleaning Apparatus andMegthod, now Patent No. 3,060,943, dated October 30, 19 2.

This invention relates to apparatus for purifying fluid, e.g. air,especially for use in cleaning containers by removing lint, dust orother particulate substances from the containers.

Bottles used for medicines and other substances intended foradministration to humans and animals ordinarily are supplied by bottlemanufacturers in sterile condition, packed in cardboard shipping cases,tops or caps ofl". In spite of the taking of reasonable precautions tokeep the bottles clean, it is known by experience that cardboard orpaper lint and other foreign matter finds its Way into the packedcontainers during shipping, handling and storage of the packing cases.Even though such foreign particles should be and usually are sterile,their presence in the bottles or other containers at the time of fillingis obviously objectionable. Removing the foreign substances just priorto filling the containers has, in the past, been somewhat troublesome,time consuming and inetficient.

In accordance with the invention disclosed in the aforesaid Patent No.3,060,943, containers to be cleaned are positioned open ends down, andare struck hammer like blows or impacts. This is accomplished bypositioning the container, open end down, on a support; and oscillatingthe support vertically. During vertical movement of the support, thelatter is momentarily or temporarily separated vertically from thecontainer, or the container is separated from the support, after whichthe support and the container re-engage each other, so that thecontainer strikes or is struck by the support with a jarring or hammerlike blow. The container is also subjected to jarring or hammer likeblows in directions other than vertical, e.g. in horizontal orsubstantially horizontal directions at various angles. The jarring,hammer like blows have been found effectively to loosen or dislodge andremove particles adhering to the container inner surfaces. The jarringof the containers is accompanied or followed by purging with a jetstream of purified fluid, e.g. air. Containers are moved in successionrelatively to the jet nozzle, generally transversely to the direction ofthe jet, so that the purging fluid will first enter each container atone side and flow upwardly, then across the container, and downwardlyand out of the other side; and thereafter will enter the container atits other side and flow upwardly, then across, and downwardly and out atits one side.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved apparatusfor purifying fluid.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a flow sheet diagrammatically depicting apparatus forpurifying fluid;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary top plan view of the 3,174,819 Patented Mar.23, 1965 container cleaning apparatus fully disclosed in the parentPatent No. 3,060,943, this view showing the top of a fluid purifyingstructure according to the present invention; and

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary vertical section of apparatus disclosed in theparent patent, and showing the interior of a fluid purifying apparatus.

As shown in FIGURES 2 and 3, the apparatus comprises a frame includinglegs 1, longitudinal members 2, and horizontal members 3. This framesupports the container moving and jarring mechanism disclosed in theparent patent, a jet nozzle N (FIGURE 1) for delivering purging fluid tothe inverted containers, and the fluid purifying equipment.

As diagrammatically shown in FIG. 1, purging air is delivered from adryer 83 through a conduit 84 to a sealed box or enclosure 85 so as toflow around an electrical germicidal lamp 86 of any suitable kind. Airwhich has passed through the enclosure 85 and around the lamp 86 flowsthrough a conduit 87, filter 88 and conduit 89 to an air compressor 90which delivers through a conduit 91 to a tank or receiver 92. Thereceiver 92 delivers air through a conduit 93 to the interior of animperforated tube 94 of quartz glass or other suitable clear transparentmaterial mounted within the enclosure 85 and providing a defined passageadjacent to and in the zone of germicidal eifect of the lamp 86 so thatthe air will be subjected again to purifying action. The tube 94 istransparent to the germicidal radiations from the lamp 86. The purifiedair leaving the tube 94 passes through a conduit 95 and a second filter96 to the jet nozzle N. In this way the purging fluid is veryefiiciently conditioned for purging particles from the containerswithout recontaminating the latter.

As the containers, already subjected to repeated hammer like blows, moveover and past the nozzle N, the jet of purging fluid first passesupwardly along the leading side of each container and then reverses toflow downwardly along the trailing side of the container. As thecontainer moves on over the jet, the flow is reversed, passing upwardlyalong the trailing side of the container and then downwardly over theleading side of the container. The horizontal jarring of the containerscontinues during their passage over the jet.

The apparatus shown and described is representative of the invention,but the disclosure is intended to be illustrative rather thandefinitive, the invention being defined in the claims.

I claim:

1. In apparatus for purifying fluid for purging containers by flowthrough a nozzle into the containers, a source of purging fluid; anenclosure; an electrical germicidal lamp in said enclosure; means fordelivering purging fluid from said source into said enclosure tosurround and flow in direct contact with said lamp; an imperforate tubein said enclosure, said tube being transparent to the germicidalradiations from said electrical germicidal lamp; means for extractingpurging fluid from within said enclosure and filtering the extractedfluid and delivering it to one end of said tube; and means fordelivering fluid from the other end of said tube to said nozzle.

2. In apparatus for purifying fluid for purging containers by flowthrough a nozzle into the containers, a source of purging fluid; anelongated enclosure; a tubular electrical germicidal lamp in andextending longitudinally of said enclosure with a clearance spacebetween the 3 4 inner walls of said enclosure and the outer surface ofReferences Cited by the Examiner said lamp; means for delivering purgingfluid from said UNITED STATES PATENTS source into one end of saidclearance space to surround and flow in direct contact with said lamp;an imperforate 2670439 2/54 Damey 99 218 X tube in and extendinglongitudinally of said enclosure 5 2681'061 6/54 21" 74 X spaced frombut close to said lamp, said tube being tranS- 2870024 1/59 Martin 21 78X parent to the germicidal radiations from said electrical 3011230 12/61Potapenko 21 53 X 3,058,177 10/62 Taylor et al 2178 X germicidal lamp;means for extracting purging fluid from the opposite end of saidclearance space and delivering it to one end of said tube; and means fordelivering fluid 10 D ONALL SYLVESTER Primary Exammer from theoppositeend of said tube to said nozzle. MORRIS O. WOLK, Examiner.

1. IN APPARATUS FOR PURIFYING FLUID FOR PURGING CONTAINERS BY FLOWTHROUGH A NOZZLE INTO THE CONTAINERS, A SOURCE OF PURGING FLUID; ANENCLOSURE; AN ELECTRICAL GERMICIDAL LAMP IN SAID ENCLOSURE; MEANS FORDELIVERING PURGING FLUID FROM SAID SOURCE INTO SAID ENCLOSURE TOSURROUND AND FLOW IN DIRECT CONTACT WITH SAID LAMP; AN IMPERFORATE TUBEIN SAID ENCLOSURE, SAID TUBE BEING TRANSPARENT TO THE GERMICIDALRADIATIONS FROM SAID ELECTRICAL GERMICIDAL LAMP; MEANS FOR EXTRACTINGPURGING FLUID FROM WITHIN SAID ENCLOSURE AND FILTERING THE EXTACTEDFLUID AND DELIVERING IT TO ONE END OF SAID TUBE; AND MEANS FORDELIVERING FLUID FROM THE OTHER END OF SAID TUBE TO SAID NOZZLE.